The bacteria that causes Legionnaires’ disease has been found in the hot tub water system of Evanston’s Hilton Garden Inn Chicago/North Shore, according to a public health notice issued by the City of Evanston Sept. 18.
In response to two confirmed cases of the disease previously linked to the hotel, located at 1818 Maple Avenue, Evanston, the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) conducted “water sampling and an environmental investigation” of its water systems earlier this month, health officials said.
Laboratory testing has now confirmed the presence of the bacteria in the water system directly associated with the hot tub, officials said. The two individuals who previously contracted the disease reported swimming in both the hotel’s pool and hot tub areas late last month.
“The hotel has received guidance from IDPH on proper remediation of the affected areas. The spa will remain closed until the full remediation process is completed,” the public health notice said.
“Water samples from other areas of the hotel did not detect Legionella.”
More Top Picks Ownboard Carbon Zeus Pro
Representatives for the Hilton Garden Inn did not immediately return a Pioneer Press request for comment on IDPH’s investigation or of its findings of the bacteria in the hotel’s hot tub.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, Legionnaire’s disease is a type of pneumonia caused by Legionella bacteria and can result in a serious lung infection.
People can get the disease within two weeks of coming into contact with “small droplets of water containing Legionella bacteria,” health officials clarified. The infection is not transmitted person-to-person.
“This bacteria has a tendency to grow in water systems,” said Emily Landon, an infectious disease specialist at University of Chicago Medicine.
Legionella typically grows as biofilm in pipes, or in the plastic tubing attached to various water regulation systems, she told Pioneer Press, making swimming pools, hot tubs, decorative fountains, shower heads and air cooling systems “hot spots” for the bacteria.
“When there is inadequate chlorination or the water temperature gets off a little bit, or if there is an influx of water runoff from a lot of rain that then floods the system and then the chlorination gets off, you can see how that can result in sort of an overgrowth of Legionella.”
If the water gets sprayed into the atmosphere in some way, either by a shower, a sink or mist in a public swimming area, it can infect people who breathe it in, Landon said.
But most healthy people who breathe in the bacteria will never contract Legionnaires’ disease, she noted.
People at increased risk are typically those over the age of 50, or individuals who have other medical problems, like a chronic disease, weakened immune system or are a current or former smoker, according to Landon.
“Legionella pneumonia is pretty bad as far as pneumonias go. The majority of people who get sick will need to be hospitalized, and many of them will even need an intensive care unit,” she said.
Legionella bacteria may also cause a disease known as “Pontiac fever,” which is a mild illness that may result in muscle aches, fever and headaches, although Landon said that’s far less common.
According to the CDC, the bacteria that causes Legionnaires’ disease rarely causes infections outside of the lungs.
While the hotel has notified guests of the presence of the bacteria in its hot tub system, health officials are advising anyone who has visited the Hilton Garden Inn within the last two weeks and is experiencing active symptoms of pneumonia — cough, shortness of breath, fatigue, fever — to contact a medical provider for guidance and treatment.
More Top Picks Best Computer Glasses For Women
The disease is treatable with antibiotics, per CDC guidance.
“Most hot tubs are not usually the problem because they often run at a temperature that’s high enough to kill Legionella,” Landon said.
“But if the temperature of your hot tub was turned down because, say, it was a really hot summer and people didn’t want to get in your hot hot tub, then that might be part of the problem.”
Landon said it’s easy to ignore these kinds of risks when running a business or building, but advised those responsible to always conduct routine maintenance and testing of water systems.
“The fact that [the hotel] has an outbreak doesn’t necessarily mean that they weren’t [doing those things]; it can happen even when you’re doing everything right.”
This is not the city’s first reported case of the illness. Evanston’s YWCA temporarily closed its facilities in October 2024 due to two reported cases of Legionnaire’s disease, among other Chicago-area facilities the following year.